Chandigarh, September 2
Tall claims of the Chandigarh Administration fall flat as one enters Government High School, Mauli Colony, situated in the heart of Mauli Jagran, a highly populated suburb of the City Beautiful. Forget about the proper implementation of the RTE Act, the school fails to meet the normal yardstick of an educational institute.

Check this: The school runs in to two shifts. The morning shift is for students of Classes VI to X (secondary) and the afternoon shift is for students of Classes I to V (primary).

The school has just 12 classrooms for 27 sections of secondary classes and 35 sections of primary classes. Each section has between 50 and 60 students, with the total strength of the school over 3,800.

"It is a challenging task to teach students in such an atmosphere," said a teacher.

The school has converted its open space, maths and home science labs and even its storeroom into classrooms to accommodate the large number of students.

The verandahs of its two-storeyed building are fully occupied by students, who have to sit on "raw surface".

While the Administration has plans to start smart schools in Chandigarh, students here are yet to be provided basic facilities. A proposal for building classrooms was mooted several times. However, nothing has been done so far.

Adding to the students' woes is a shortage of teachers. Sections are at times merged to meet the shortage of teachers, which has worsened the teacher-pupil ratio.

RK Ranchan, Headmaster of the school, said the school needed to be developed properly and the authorities had been apprised of it. "Despite this, we are trying to manage a healthy atmosphere in the school in the best possible manner," he said.

The condition of other schools around Mauli Jagran is more or less the same. Government Primary School near the Mauli Jagran police station is being run from a cluster of 11 one-room flats of the Chandigarh Housing Board for over a decade now.

Schoolchildren are made to sit on the floor since the size of the rooms is too small to accommodate benches required for the over 350 students from Classes I to V.

A schoolteacher said, “No movement is possible in these congested classes. Even reaching the blackboard is an extreme struggle.”

Headmaster Sukhjit Singh said the government was constructing a new school building and the students would hopeful shift there by next year.

Another school near Mauli Jagran, Government High School (Vikas Nagar), has a comparitively better infrastructure since its building has recently been constructed.

Childen sit on the floor at Government Hogh School, Vikas Nagar, near Mauli Jagran. A tribune photograph

However, given the strength of the school, it still falls short of the required number of classrooms. Against 27 sections for primary classes and 25 for secondary classes, the total number of classrooms is just 19. Work of the construction of new classrooms has, however, started in the backyard of the school, which will take about a year and s half to complete.

A teacher said the RTE Act had increased the pressure on schools, especially those in the city suburbs, which have a huge population of migrants. Under the Act, the schools cannot refuse admission to any child. The government was yet to upgrade the infrastructure to meet the increasing demand, she said. Mauli Jagran School, which has been upgraded to the senior secondary level, is in a slightly better condition since the school has recently got 16 new rooms. However, the school faces a shortage of teachers. Trained graduate teachers (TGTs) are teaching students of Classes XI and XII. Principal Manjit Kaur said, “We have written to the authorities regarding the shortage of teachers. I am sure the situation will improve soon.” Dr Upkar Singh, DPI (Schools), was not available for comments. 

Chandigarh, September 2
Wanted gangster Gurdeep Sekhon, who managed to escape after firing at a team of the Punjab police near Sector 34, Chandigarh, on August 30, has been found interacting with his friends on the social networking site, Facebook. Despite this, the police is clueless about him.

Interestingly, the gangster has been interacting on the social networking site with other wanted criminals, who, too, have their accounts. All of them have a long friend list and have uploaded their pictures also.

Gurdeep Sekhon had opened fire in Sector 34 after he saw some Punjab Police personnel chasing him in a car. The firing had created panic in the sector.

“Sekhon has a Facebook account under the name Gurpreet Sekhon Mudki. He has uploaded his pictures also. The profile picture shows Mudki with a pistol on his neck. He has a long friend list,” said a senior Punjab Police official on condition of anonymity. Sekhon is wanted in Punjab as he had allegedly murdered Happy Deora in Ferozepur in July this year.

The police official said Sekhon's accomplices such as Shera, Rocky and some other wanted criminals, were also on Facebook. “Shera has an account under the name Shera Khuban. He has also loaded his pictures. He is operating the account as his friend list is increasing,” added the official.

The police maintained that there was no status update on Sekhon's Facebook account ever since the firing incident took place, but his friend list increased this morning, indicating that he had operated it and accepted a request.

Asked why the police could not track these criminals through Facebook accounts, Dalbir Singh, Station House Officer (SHO), Punjab Police, said, “We are tracking their Facebook accounts minute by minute. They are not carrying mobile phones. They are using cyber cafes to operate their accounts. They keep changing their location.” The UT police has registered a case of endangering the life of others against Sekhon under Section 336 of the IPC at the Sector 34 police station.

Sekhon was travelling in a Fortuner, bearing a Punjab registration number, when he fired three gunshots at a Scorpio carrying a team of Punjab Police officials. Sekhon had reportedly come to meet his girlfriend. 

Chandigarh, September 2
With a consistent increase in the number of patients visiting the PGI, the waiting hall at its Emergency Ward has turned into a patients' ward, accommodating more than 100 patients and their attendants, almost everyday.

The Emergency Ward at the PGI, on an average, receives 300 per cent more patients than its capacity of 100 beds. Flooded with an abnormally high number of indoor patients and an equal number of attendants, the Emergency Ward is in a dire need of expansion.

The ward received 56,755 patients last year. The average number of patient admitted per day was 226. The inflow of patients at the OPDs in the PGI has gone up to 18,49,015 annually. As many as 68,175 patients were admitted last year.

While the Advanced Trauma Centre has been set up to share the patient load at the Emergency, the situation at the Emergency Ward continues to be the same.

At the Advanced Trauma Centre, where patients for neurosurgery, orthosurgery and general surgery are being shifted, the occupancy reaches up to 140 against the sanctioned bed strength of 78.

PGI’s official spokesperson Manju Wadwalkar said, “The capacity of the Emergency cannot be expanded beyond a limit. Despite setting up the Advanced Trauma Centre to share the patient load and running emergency services at specialised centres, the patient inflow could not be brought down. The situation can only be improved by enhancing the services at other medical institutes in the region.”

On an average, 11 to 13 new orthopaedic patients come in on any given day. Most of these are complex cases with multiple fractures and polytrauma and have been referred to the PGI because they cannot be managed by other hospitals, according to officials.

The already admitted patients receive less attention with every new admission in the ward, say sources.

With a total capacity of 1,900 beds, the institute has been catering to more than 3,000 indoor patients in addition to the 500 to 600 patients that arrive at the Emergency and the OPDs daily. 

Chandigarh, September 2
Women power is in play on the Panjab University campus. Considering the fact that girl students dominate the PU vote bank, all parties have mobilised their girl teams for campaigning in girls' hostels and teaching departments. Girls can be seen moving in hostels, delivering speeches on behalf of their party leaders.

Girls comprise 70 per cent of the total strength of the PU and have always played the deciding factor in the university politics. The parties have constituted teams of girls in each hostel, which have been entrusted with the task of attracting the maximum possible number of girls by highlighting their agenda.

Payal, a resident of hostel No. VII and SOPU supporter, said girls alone could decide the fate of candidates because of their huge strength. Gunpreet, another party supporter and resident of hostel No. IV, who has been assigned the duty of holding meetings with hostel inmates, said girls played a key role in ensuring the victory of any candidate.

Of the over 14,000 students on the campus, around 9,000 are girls.

PUSU has also deputed a girl in each hostel to hold campaigning sessions and discussions with the hostel inmates.

Pooja Lamba, a resident of hostel No. 1, is sharing her party ideology with the students to ensure that they vote for PUSU.

Besides the visits of student leaders to the teaching departments for seeking votes, girls' teams are also visiting the departments to garner support for their respective parties.

PUSU leader Sumit Gokhlaney said they had constituted a team of girls, which was responsible for campaigning in various departments and make students aware about the party’s agenda. 

Panchkula, September 2
In a shocking revelation, around 300 BPL families in Sector 28, Panchkula, have been supplied decayed and fungus-ridden foodgrains by the district administration. The beneficiaries have got 35 kg each of these foodgrains.

Affected families lodged a complaint with the Food and Supply authorities following which a team of the department took samples.

"We received the foodgrains on Friday and these were stinking. We found that the foodgrains had decayed and were not fit for consumption. How can the authorities be so lax?" asked Hari Prasad, a resident of a colony in Sector 28.

He added, "We got the foodgrains from the local depot holder."

Panchkula Deputy Commissioner (DC) Ashima Brar said, “I have not received any complaint so far. The affected families can give me a written complaint on Monday and I will look into the matter.”

BPL families get foodgrains from local depots and each family is entitled to 35 kg of foodgrains as monthly rations. There are about 300 families in the colony that have got rotten foodgrains.

Vicky, another resident of the colony, said, “Do they want to kill us? We don’t even give such grains to animals. If we are poor doesn’t mean that anything can be passed on to us.” 

The vehicular density in the tricity is increasing day by day without any systematic check. As a result, the cars are parked on roads in front of houses, and anywhere and everywhere possible. The Chandigarh Administration has been proposing basement parking lots and community parking since quite some time but nothing concrete has come up so far. Chandigarh has only one community parking that is at Sector 19. The community parking and basement parking are the need of the hour as the residents need proper place to park their vehicles. Basement parking lots would be a great relief in places where there is no space on the ground. The Municipal Corporation has Rs 1.5 crore to build community parking but still no action has been taken. The authorities need to gear up before the situation gets worse. The requirement for constructing parking lots should be met as soon as possible so that the residents are able to park their cars in a proper place instead of parking them on the roads and obstructing the flow of traffic.

Isha Dahiya, Panchkula

Car Parking-a big hassle

Chandigarh, September 2
A 22-year-old girl, who was drowning in the Sukhna Lake, was rescued by the Chandigarh police constables this evening. Although the police stated that the girl accidentally fell into the lake, one of the eyewitnesses claimed that she jumped into the lake in a bid to commit suicide.

According to the police, a resident of Sector 38, fell unconscious while sitting on the stairs of the lake and fell into it at around 8.30 pm.

Sources said three constables, two of them deployed on VIP security, saw the girl drowning. Constable Sampuran Singh jumped into the lake while Rajesh Kumar and Varinder Singh helped him locate the drowning girl by lighting the torch.

The constables, after rescuing the girl, called the PCR that took her to the Lake police post from where she was taken to the Sector 3 police station. Her parents were informed about the incident. They immediately reached the police station.

The girl, in her statement to the police, has stated that she, while sitting on the stairs of the lake, fell unconscious and slipped into the lake.

Meanwhile, Chetan Thakur stated that he saw the girl jumped into the lake. He raised an alarm. “I was also sitting nearby and noticed the girl’s behavior was abnormal. Before I could understand anything, the girl jumped into the lake”, he said.

Investigation was on till the filing of the report.

Panchkula, September 2
Vinod Kumar along with his wife was left alone in an isolated area near Raipurrani. He was robbed of his Verna car at a gunpoint by masked youths on his way to Panchkula from Paonta Sahib.

He immediately dialled 100 on his mobile, as anyone at his position would have, to contact the Panchkula police. The call, however, connected him with Yamunangar police control room.

The incident points to a shocking state of affair. Relying on the emergency number 100 would be a mistake for the Panchkula residents as the number hardly works. There have been several cases where victims have dialled the number during an emergency situation but failed to get any response.

It was on July 25, when an old couple, resident of Sector 27, Panchkula, was reportedly robbed of their Verna car by three unidentified youths near the Sector-26/27 road. The couple kept dialling the 100 number but failed to get a response.

“Some boys helped us. They too dialled 100 and found that no one was responding the calls. Then one of them called up an advocate who knew a police. Then the police came to help us,” said the couple.

“My father had met with an accident on the road dividing Sector 5 and 6. We kept calling at the 100 number. My son rushed to the police station and it was then a policeman came to help,” said Shikha Luthra, a resident of Sector 7, Panchkula.

Similarly in a Porsche theft case too, the owner kept dialling the 100 number but the call did not get connected.

When contacted the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) crime, Dheeraj Setia, said, “The fault is from the side of the company. Sometimes it depends on the connection of the person also who is dialling the number.”

Mohali, September 2
There has been strong opposition to Tuesday's decision of the Punjab Cabinet to impose property tax in urban areas with residents here describing it as an unwarranted and unjustified financial burden at a time when they are already battling spiralling prices.

The reactions today ranged from "a step to turn freehold property into leasehold", "a blow to every section of society" to "making the common man pay for the government's failure to adopt the right economic policies".

Balbir Singh Sidhu, Congress MLA, who lives in Phase VII here, said the levying of property tax was "totally unjustified". By doing this, the government was "turning freehold property into leasehold". He said retirees, who did not get any pension, were already facing a tough time making both ends meet, and now the government decision would make them feel "as if they are living in rented accommodation instead of their own houses".

He said government revenue would come down as the sale and purchase of property, which was already very low at present, would further come down after the Cabinet decision.

A former senior vice-president of the then Municipal Council, NK Marwaha, said the decision was unjustified, and the levying of property tax on vacant plots in particular was meaningless. "A vacant plot owner does not earn any income from his property, but will have to pay to the government as well to the Department of Income Tax at the time of its sale".

He said on one hand the government wanted to help those belonging to economically weaker sections while on the other it proposed imposing property tax even on 50-yd plots. "Why had such taxes not been proposed in the state Budget? Why are these now being levied through executive orders?" asked Marwaha.

A resident of Phase IV, Jasbir Singh, said, "The government has been adopting wrong economic policies and the common man is being made to pay for its incompetence". He said inflation had already eaten deep into the housewife's budget and such taxes would make the family stagger under the burden.

However, defending the government's decision, prominent SAD leader Balwant Singh Ramoowlia said, "The government just wants residents to contribute a wee bit to the development of the state".

According to the Cabinet decision, property tax would be on a unit-area basis and be determined on the basis of the actual market value of the property in question.

A senior official said on houses measuring 50 yd and 100 yd, the tax would be Rs 50 and Rs 150 per annum, respectively. On houses measuring above 100 yd and other buildings and property, it would be charged on a unit-area basis. It would also be levied on vacant plots, schools and other educational institutions. The prices of properties would be fixed by the Deputy Commissioners and the other authorities concerned. However, cremation grounds, religious places, gaushalas and animal care centres would be exempted from paying the tax.

Mohali, September 2
Residents of MIG Colony in Phase XI were up in arms against the ‘careless’ attitude of the local Municipal Corporation, which has led to huge wild growth in and around their locality.

“Due to these wild growths, our locality has become a habitat of dangerous reptiles like venomous snakes and other insects,” rued the residents.

“We have been virtually living under constant fear. Snakes surface in our colony almost every alternate day. One can see these reptiles roaming in the streets and entering homes,” said Paramjit Singh Rangi, a resident of the locality.

Expressing similar fear, Seema Devi said, “It is very scary to walk in the streets these days as snakes come out of the bushes so often. I don’t allow my children to go to the parks. See the wild growth in the area, why don’t the MC officials cut it?” said Seema.

The residents claimed that they have approached the authorities concerned several times and have apprised them of the problem. “Our complaints have failed to make any impact on the authorities,” said the residents.

Chandigarh, September 2
The UT Administration has agreed in principle to allot two acres of land to the Chandigarh Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) so that it could have its own premises to function from.

Sources said the UT administration’s decision was conveyed to the Tribunal recently and that land would be allotted near No.3 Base Repair Depot adjoining the Industrial Area Phase-II. Several other defence organisations including Border Security Force (West) and Defence Research and Development Organisation were opening up their offices in the area.

At present, the Chandigarh Bench of the AFT is functioning from an interim location at Chandimandir military station, and its courts and offices are housed in several modified barracks and outhouses.

“The next step would now involve demarcation of the land and fixing the price, for which several meetings are expected to be held,” an official said. “Since it would be a government-to-government transaction, the price of the land is expected to be lower than the prevailing market rate,” he added.

The Chandigarh Bench is among the largest of the AFT’s nine regional benches, having three authorised benches, though only two are functional at the moment. It has jurisdiction over the states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Chandigarh.

This region has a very large number of serving as well as retired Armed Forces personnel.

Since the Chandigarh Bench started functioning about three years ago, it has handled around 10,000 cases, out of which 7000 cases have been disposed off so far, sources said. Some were transferred from the region’s High Courts while others were filed afresh.

There is a proposal to have a separate bench for Jammu and Kashmir, probably with courts based in Srinagar and Jammu. It was difficult for people from the state to travel all the way to Chandigarh to attend court proceedings.

Chandigarh, September 2
A resident of the city has moved a complaint against the Senior Medical Officer (SMO) posted at the government dispensary at Sector 45, alleging rude behaviour towards him and negligence “which resulted in his mother’s death”.

The complainant, Kuldip Singh, has said his 84-year-old mother Rajinder Kaur, who was a cancer patient, died on August 13 this year. She had been availing herself of treatment under the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS).

“On August 11, we visited the dispensary to procure the medicines prescribed by Fortis Hospital, which has been covered under the CGHS, for my mother. The woman in charge advised us to get a fresh prescription issued from her colleague, Dr Rajneesh Singhal (SMO). However, on our request Dr Singhal started shouting at us,” said Singh.

In the complaint sent to the Additional Director, CGHS, the complainant writes, “Dr Singhal ridiculed us in the presence of other patients asking us how could we enter his room without his permission and a token. I told him that we gave the token number to his in charge while visiting her. And she put her initials on the prescription of the Fortis Hospital and asked us to show it to him for the issuance of a fresh prescription of the CGHS.”

Dr Singhal also refused to visit the bed-ridden patient. Upon the request of the other patients sitting in the dispensary, he issued a fresh prescription listing eight medicines out of which only two were available at the dispensary, according to the complainant.

“For the rest of the six medicines prescribed by him, he asked us to visit the dispensary on August 14,” Kuldip Singh said.

The Additional Director, CGHS, has marked an inquiry into the matter, a copy of which is available with the Chandigarh Tribune.

Rajinder Kaur had been treated at IVY Hospital, Mohali, from July 27 to August 4, this year and Rs 1,00,000 was spent on her treatment. “Keeping in view our affordability and problems we faced in getting reimbursement of medical expenses, we were advised to get treatment at Fortis Hospital, Mohali, which is on the panel of the CGHS. We got a requisition for one-time consultancy from the dispensary in charge and got the prescription for the issue of medicine from Fortis Hospital,” said the complainant.

Chandigarh, September 2
The proposal of the UT science and technology department to install the country's first solar tree near the city's landmark Sukhna Lake has been rejected by the urban planning department of the UT Administration.

Mentioning that the installation of a solar tree near the lake will not be permissible as the area falls under the heritage zone, the UT urban planning department states that the move will also affect migratory birds coming to the lake every year.

Sources said now the department had asked the science and technology department to find another suitable place for the proposed solar tree in the city.

The sources added that after receiving the reply from the urban planning department, the officials of the science and technology department are looking for a new site.

A senior official of the UT Administration said they had made arrangements for the installation of solar tree and had already discussed the project with the company, who was to install the tree near the le, but now the department has rejected the proposal.

He added that around Rs 5 lakh was to be spent on the installation of the tree.

The sources stated that now the science and technology department was planning to install the solar tree at the roundabout of Sectors 42-43. As Sectors 1 to 30 fall under the heritage zone, officials thought that roundabout of Sectors 42-43 would be a suitable site for the solar tree, they added.

Chandigarh, September 2
High drama was witnessed outside the residence of Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal at Sector 2 here when the residents of the NAC, Nayagaon, protested outside his house. Led by Kharar MLA and former minister Jagmohan Kang, the agitators alleged that they were not being provided the basic facilities at Nayagaon, Nada, Karoran and Kansal villages.

“It has been around five and a half years since the present SAD-BJP alliance came to power, but ironically no development has taken place and that too in an area adjoining the City Beautiful,” said Kang.

He added, “The incumbent Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal have been making tall claims of development, but the NAC, Naya Gaon, which is at a stone's throw from their official residence, is stinking due to lack of sanitation and proper sewerage.”

The protesters said the roads, too, were in a very bad shape and there were no proper streetlights, drinking water & power supply.

"House plans were not being passed due to which not only unplanned construction was going on unabated but the NAC was also losing on revenue. The NAC is on the verge of a financial collapse as the VAT funds, which were to be given to committees in lieu of cessation of octroi, were not released by the Punjab government. It has become difficult for the NAC to pay salaries to its employees and to foot its electricity and water bills,” said another protester.

It was after an official told the protesters that he would get a meeting fixed with the CM tomorrow in this regard that the protesters relent. They were assured that all their demand would be heard at the meeting.

The Indian Cardiology Summit 2012 was organised by the ACE Heart and Vascular Institute at Chandigarh today. Renowned cardiologists discussed the best practices and latest advances in the field of cardiovascular diseases and therapies to cure them. ACE Director, Dr Puneet K Verma, and Dr RP Sapru inaugurated the summit by lighting a ceremonial lamp. It was followed by an inaugural address and introduction to the programme by Dr Sapru and Dr Verma. During the sessions of the summit, the participants shared the best practices from their wide array of experiences and also discussed approaches for preventing and treating cardiovascular diseases.The newer and more effective drugs for the management of a heart attack were discussed by Dr Anurag Sharma, a senior Consultant at Max Hospital, Mohali. Dr HK Bali from Fortis Hospital shared his perspective on treating complex coronary disease with angioplasty.

Felicitated

Bharat Vikas Parishad’s Madhav Eye Bank today observed the 27th National Eye Donation Fortnight 2012 in a function held at Indira Holiday Home, Sector 24, Chandigarh. The event was attended by over 200 people showing their solidarity towards the movement. The remarkable feature of the event was the felicitation of 18 members whose wards have donated their eyes after their death. These families hail from Chandigarh, Mohali, Derabassi, Mandi Gobindgarh, Amloh, Sirhind and other parts of Punjab. In another initiative, Bharat Vikas Parishad Charitable Medical Centre has introduced mobile eye services with the inauguration of a mobile van which will have all the basic facilities for eye care.

Workshop

Desh Bhagat Institute of Management & Computer Sciences hosted a two-day entrepreneurship workshop by Nurture Talent Academy and Confluence-Business Summit of IIM Ahmadabad. The objective of the workshop was to provide the students a chance to learn how to generate ideas, make business plans, start new ventures, manage finance and launch products in the market. The theme of the workshop was ‘Idea to Execution’. Over 200 students from the host college as well as from other institutes of the state participated in the workshop. Inaugurating the event, director general of Desh Bhagat Group of Institutes Dr Shalini Gupta welcomed the IIM team saying that it was an honour for the institutes to host this workshop.

Student shines

Purnima Sehgal has topped the fourth semester of the MBA (off-campus) examination of Panjab University. She has topped in all the four semesters in the university. She has also been a triple gold medallist from Panjab University in BCom, BCom (Honours) and MCom examinations.

Study conducted

Citing recent studies conducted by the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, which determined that H1N1 (swine flu virus) is now a part of the seasonal flu, city-based experts noted that annual flu vaccination is a must for high-risk groups. The vaccine is also crucial for healthcare professionals whose exposure to the high-risk groups remains higher, said experts from Chaitanya Hospital, Sector 44. The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified children below 5 years of age, pregnant woman, adults with asthma, diabetics, heart disorder, liver, kidney, blood and cancer, and those aged above 65 years as high-risk groups.

Launched

Mohali-based institute Taaleem India announced the launch of Taaleem College of International Studies (TCIS) in collaboration with its academic partner, Asian International College (AIC), Singapore, in Chandigarh on Thursday. Jaiprakash Singh Hasrajani, CEO, Taaleem India, whose campus is in Sector 67, Mohali, said that students will be trained by exposing them to practical work situations through live projects, R&D, and internships.

Branch office opened

Health insurance company Max Bupa has opened a branch office in Chandigarh, extending its network to 16 branches across India. "With our branch office in Chandigarh we will be able to reach more customers in the region. We want to cover 1 million customers by 2015 and we are confident that Punjab and Chandigarh will play a key role in surpassing this milestone," said Max Bupa senior vice-president Sibaranjan Patnaik.

Township launched

Panchkula-based Idyllic Group today announced the launch of its integrated township in Panchkula Extension, part-11. This township, called Panchkula Eco City, will be spread in over 50 acres. Vishnu Goyal, director of the company, said that they were investing Rs 300 crore in the project, which would have 358 residential plots varying from 185-1000 square yard in size. He said that they will provide possession in 18 months from now.

—Tribune Reporters

Chandigarh, September 2
Panjab University Students Union (PUSU), in alliance with the National Students Union of India (NSUI), today declared Abhinav Puri, a fifth-year student of the University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET), as their presidential candidate.

After a series of meetings which continued throughout the day, PUSU decided to join hands with the NSUI for the forthcoming student elections. Interestingly, PUSU had contested last elections in alliance with the ABVP and had lost to the Student Organsiation of Panjab University (SOPU).

The UIET, being the biggest department on PU campus with a strength of around 2400 students, has once again emerged as the first choice of the party to pick a candidate from.

Meanwhile, SOPU leaders were also mulling over to join hands with the Hindustan Student Association (HSA). However, the party could not make any decision till Sunday.

Chandigarh, September 2
A day before the nominations for the student elections, the Panjab University Students Union (PUSU) released their manifesto with a long list of promises covering various departments, focusing on raising the standard of education by updating the syllabus and providing better infrastructure.

PUSU in its manifesto has claimed to be committed to making a change in the education system of PU by ensuring accountably to PU administrative branch and getting it completely computerised so that the results can be declared on time.

The party promises to come-up with a guidance and counselling cell for the students. The party manifesto this year has been divided under various sub-heads to attract students' attention.

PUSU leader Sumit Goklaney said that they have everything for the students of science, arts and law departments and for various self-financed courses as well. “Our major focus would be on getting the fee of self-financed courses reduced. We will also try to get a reduction in the fee for re-appear exams," he said. He stated that the party's priority would be to ensure a regular faculty, improved infrastructure, class rooms, libraries and washrooms in the arts department.

The party has also focused on long-pending issues of research scholars, including timely enrolment in PhD and awarding experience certificate to PhD students for taking classes during their research.

PUSU also promises to start convocation at the department level so that the students get their degrees on time.

Goklaney further said that improving accommodation on campus to ensure that the maximum number of students gets hostel is also a part of their agenda.